What are the ethical, social and environmental impacts of digital technology?
Describe the ethical, social and environmental impacts of digital technology, including privacy, the digital divide, e-waste and energy use.
A focused answer to the WJEC GCSE Digital Technology content on the ethical, social and environmental impacts of digital technology, covering privacy, the digital divide, health and society, electronic waste and energy consumption.
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What this dot point is asking
WJEC asks you to describe the wider effects of digital technology on people, society and the environment, both good and bad. This includes ethical issues such as privacy, social issues such as the digital divide and health, and environmental issues such as electronic waste and energy use. The exam form is "describe N impacts" or "explain a concern and how to reduce it", so you need a range of distinct, explained impacts.
Ethical impacts
Digital technology raises questions about what is right.
Social impacts
Technology changes how people live and relate to each other.
Environmental impacts
Making, running and disposing of technology affects the planet.
Reducing the impacts
The exam often asks how harms can be lessened.
Evaluating an impact
The exam rewards an impact with a way to address it.
Why this matters
The ethical, social and environmental impacts are where the whole course connects to the real world, and they are a rich source of evaluation marks. Privacy links to data protection and security; the digital divide and misinformation link to communications and society; e-waste and energy use are the environmental cost of the devices and networks studied throughout. Being able to describe a range of impacts, both positive and negative, and suggest how harms can be reduced, is exactly the balanced, responsible thinking WJEC rewards.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
WJEC-style4 marksDescribe two environmental impacts of digital technology and suggest how each could be reduced.Show worked answer →
Electronic waste (e-waste): old or broken devices are discarded, often containing harmful materials that can pollute if sent to landfill. This can be reduced by recycling devices properly, repairing rather than replacing, and reusing or donating working equipment.
Energy consumption: digital devices and especially large data centres use a great deal of electricity, contributing to carbon emissions. This can be reduced by using energy-efficient devices, switching equipment off when not needed, and powering data centres with renewable energy.
Markers award one mark for each environmental impact and one mark for a sensible way to reduce each, up to four marks. The impacts must be genuine environmental effects, not general "pollution".
WJEC-style3 marksExplain what is meant by the digital divide and why it is a social concern.Show worked answer →
The digital divide is the gap between those who have good access to digital technology and the internet and those who do not, for example due to cost, location or skills.
It is a social concern because those without access can be disadvantaged: they may struggle to access online education, jobs, services and information that others take for granted, which can increase inequality.
Markers award one mark for defining the digital divide (the gap in access), one for a reason for it (cost, location, skills), and one for why it matters (disadvantage / inequality in access to opportunities and services).
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Sources & how we know this
- WJEC GCSE Digital Technology specification — WJEC (2021)
- WJEC GCSE Digital Technology Unit 1 guide — WJEC (2020)